Project Summary/Abstract Improving the HIV treatment cascade and future innovations in HIV prevention research requires an integration of biological and behavioral sciences. The Providence/Boston Center for AIDS Research (P/B CFAR) use of an integrated biobehavioral approach has positioned us at the forefront of translational science to move efficacious HIV treatment and preventive interventions into real world settings. We have decided to merge our Clinical Sciences and Behavioral Sciences Cores into one integrated BioBehavioral Sciences Core (BBSC) because the separate cores had aligned services and similar missions. The newly formed BBSC supports innovative, integrated medical/behavioral research to improve the HIV treatment cascade and HIV prevention among vulnerable populations including justice-involved individuals, women, youth, and persons living in hyperepidemic resource-limited settings. Our diverse biobehavioral services support HIV research in five areas and comprise our aims: 1) provide access to populations of HIV-infected persons and persons at-risk for HIV-infection, including associated data. This includes support with participant recruitment, enrollment, and retention to advance biobehavioral research; 2) provide services to support innovative medical and behavioral data collection approaches, including methods, tools, and assessments; 3) provide expertise and services related to regulatory and human subjects' compliance, and the ethical conduct of research for vulnerable populations; 4) provide expertise and services to support the development, implementation, and evaluation of interventions to improve HIV prevention and continuum of care outcomes; and 5) provide specialized services for the conduct of implementation science research and for performing cost-effectiveness research. Examples of the innovative biobehavioral research supported by our Core includes, the use of HIV Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) among MSM, the study of factors related to the implementation of PrEP, and the use of large databases to examine HIV outcomes and health care utilization among older persons. Other innovations include a theory-driven approach to training and networking that extends and deepens the influence of CFAR on HIV science by facilitating new networks across the region, between cities and states, and in international sites. The Core Co-Directors, Key Core Faculty, and Core Manager have the requisite skills and expertise to provide the services offered. The BBSC holds quarterly research-in-progress meetings (alternating location between BU-BMC and Brown- Lifespan) to review existing projects, brainstorm new research ideas, foster new research collaborations, promote the use of available datasets and repository specimens, explore the development of compatible cross- site datasets, review important research articles, and disseminate relevant funding opportunities. The BBSC is central to the overall mission of the P/B CFAR and promotes and supports biobehavioral research addressing NIH Office of AIDS Research priority areas.